Iowans size up Republican presidential field

DES MOINES – As early season political scouts, the role of Iowa Republicans likely to attend the state's first-in-the-nation 2016 precinct caucuses next February is more about cutting the field of recruits to the starting five than it is picking the party's eventual MVP.

Another step in that process took place last night when more than 1,300 GOP activists turned out for the party's annual Lincoln Day Dinner to audition 12 presidential prospects seeking to earn one of the coveted tickets out of Iowa in their quest to land the Republican nomination at the national convention in Cleveland in July 2016.

'It's a challenge, but it's a good challenge,” said State Auditor Mary Mosiman. 'Every single candidate I've heard from has different strengths and similar priorities.

'Right now getting to know our field of candidates is important,” she said. 'I have no intention of having a candidate prior to the straw poll because it's just too big of a field.”

Making 10-minute appeals for Iowans' support at the party spring fundraiser were past and president business executives Carly Fiorina of California and Donald Trump of New York, Michigan pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Govs. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Scott Walker of Wisconsin, former Govs. Jeb Bush of Florida, George Pataki of New York and Rick Perry of Texas, Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Rand Paul of Kentucky, and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.

'It's easier to say who you've ruled out at this point than who you've ruled in,” said David Johnson, a GOP state senator from Ocheyedan who backs Perry but has several other governors on his radar screen.

The unified message from the podium Saturday was opposition to radical Islamic jihadists who want to destroy America, concern over the weakening of the U.S. military and national security, shrinking the role and reach of government, and outrage over the 'assault” on religious freedom in this country.

'President Obama has done a lot of damage in his seven years in office,” Jindal said, making it imperative that Republicans prevail in 2016. 'We can beat Hillary; we must beat Hillary; we will beat Hillary in 2016 and take our country back.”

Santorum, who won the 2012 Iowa caucuses, told the audience to listen to the candidates' visions but also to look at their records.

'You're going to have a tough job to decide who the right person is to send forth,” said Santorum, looking ahead to Iowa's Feb. 1 decision. 'This is an opportunity you have to put forth a leader.”

Carson differentiated himself by noting that his challengers have more political experience, but he said there are other qualifications worth noting and 'living in the real world is one of them.”

Paul urged Republicans to offer an inclusive 'message of hope” that will attract new people and new independents to the party. 'That's how you win elections,” he said.

Walker noted he lived for seven years in Chuck Grassley's congressional district in Plainfield during the 1970s before his family moved to Wisconsin, where he has led a conservative conversion in a state that hadn't elected a GOP governor since 1984 but voted for him three times in the last four years.

Perry and Graham scored points with folksy appeals, while Fiorina drew some of the strongest applause before getting cut off for going beyond the 10-minute speaking limit. Trump asked the question 'What would Trump do” while critiquing Obama's performance in office.

Winnowing a field of candidates that could hit 16 is proving to be a formidable task even for Iowa's seasoned political veterans who paid the $100 admission price to hear the largest gathering of candidates in Iowa to date make their sales pitches.

'I don't believe that our grass roots are ready to make their decision, possibly even their decision on their top two or three. That's how wide open this thing is,” said Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann. 'I've heard very few people say this person is out.”

The race is in its formative stages, Kaufmann said, but he expects the race will become 'a full-contact sport” at some point as the party's Aug. 8 straw poll approaches. He said the unifying theme he is hearing from rank-and-file Republicans is they plan to 'circle the wagons” once they have a 2016 nominee to win in the general election.

Rl Comments: (515) 243-7220; rod.boshart@thegazette.com